Locking device for switch and signal operating mechanism



(No Model.) 3 Sheets-Sheet 1.

T. H. PATENALL. LOCKING DEVICE FOR SWITCH AND SIGNAL OPERATINGMECHANISM.

No. 474,528. Patented May 10, 1892,

Wzeawess- (No Model.) 3 SheetsShe et 2. T. H. PATENALL.

LOCKING DEVICE FOR SWITCH AND SIGNAL OPERATING MECHANISM.

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(No Model.) 7 3 Sheets-Sheet 3.

T. H. PATENALL.

LOOKING DEVICE FOR SWITGH'AND SIGNAL OPERATING MEGHANISM, No 474,528.Patented May 10, 1892.

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THOMAS H. PATENALL, OF RAI-IVVAY, NEW JERSEY.

LOCKING DEVICE FOR SWITCH AND SIGNAL OPERATING MECHANISM.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 474,528, dated May 10,1892.

Application filed January 2, 1892. Serial No. 416,775. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, THOMAS H. PATENALL, of Rahway, in the county ofUnion and State of New Jersey, have invented a new and usefulImprovement in Looking Devices for Switch and Signal OperatingMechanisms, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to an improvement in a locking device for use inconnection with switch and signal operating mechanism, with a view topreventing the possibility of changing the switch and route after it isonce set and signal given to proceed until the train has responded tothe meaning of such signal.

A practical embodiment of my invention is represented in theaccompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 is a top plan view of thelocking device. Fig. 2 is a view of the same in side elevation, one sideof the casing being removed. Fig. 8 is a view in vertical transversesection on the line 00 00 of Fig. 1. Fig. 4. is a View in end elevationof switch and signal operating mechanism, showing the connection inwhich the locking device is used. Fig. 5 is a view of the same in frontelevation, the operating levers and parts immediately connectedtherewith being omitted; and Fig. 6 is a diagram illustrating a portionof a system of switch and signal operating mechanism in connection withmain and branch. tracks for the purpose of more clearly indicating theoperation of the locking device.

The locking device forming the subjectmatter of my present applicationis intended to be operated after the switch has been thrown and thefacing-point lock and detector-bar adjusted and immediately before thesignal has been set. In order to show its effect upon the system as awhole in connection with the mechanism with which it is intimatelyconnected, I have shown such parts of the system as are immediatelyaffected thereby, and will refer to so much of the same as is consistentwith a clear explanation of the operation and effect of the lockingdevice itself.

In making use of the term facing-point lock and detector-bar I refer toa well-known device for locking the sharp thin end of a switch-rail inits position snugly against the main rail when the switch is thrown, andcommonly consisting of a sliding bar worked by a lever in theswitch-tower.

The mechanism constituting the locking device may be convenientlyinclosecl within a suitable casing A, here shown as of oblongrectangular form, and consists of the following parts: An electro-magnetB depends from and is secured to a bracket 0, fixed to astandard C, andits armature bis carried by a short arm I) of an angle-lever, thelongarm 19 0f which is provided at its upper end with aninsulating-piece Z9 An electric circuit maker and breaker 12 consists inthe present instance of a screw passed through and secured to theinsulatingpiece 11 The angle-lever to which the armature is secured ispivotally mounted in a suitable support c. A pair of contact-pieces d,consisting of outwardly-flaring spring-jaws, are secured to the upperend of the standard D in such position relatively to the circuit makerand breaker carried by the long arm 19 of the angle-lever that when thearmature is drawn toward the magnet the circuit maker and breaker b willengage the faces of the. two contact-pieces d and complete the electriccircuit through them; but when the short arm I) of the said angle-leveris allowed to fall away from the magnet G such movement will swing thelong arm b of said lever so as to throw the circuit-breaker 6 out ofcontact with the jaws d, and hence break the circuit through them. Asliding bar E is mounted so as to have a limited longitudinal slidingmovement back and forth in proximity to the long arm I) of theangle-lever, and is provided with a notch 6, so located that when it isin front of a nose b on the arm 11 and the,

said arm allowed to move away from the jaws d to break the circuittherethrough the said nose b will engage the recess c in the sliding barE and lock the latter against longitudinal movement. For the purposes ofmy present invention such position of the notch e will take place whenthe bar E is slid outwardly into the position shown in Fig. 2. Theposition of said bar when at the opposite end of its movement or thrustinwardly is represented by dotted lines in said figure. For conveniencein operating the bar E, I provide a handle 6', secured to a shortextension e the latter pivotally secured at one end of the bar E, asshown at a and its opposite end provided with a lip 6 overlapping theupwardly-extending lug or projection e on a supporting-piece fixed tothe casing.

The angle-lever F is pivotally secured to a suitable support within thecasing atf, one of its arms having a loose connection with the stud c onthe sliding bar E, and the other arm connected with an operatingod f,leading downwardly to another angle-lever F, (see Fig. 5,) by which asliding key f is operated to release the signal-operating bar and at thesame time to lock the facing-point lock and detector-bar lever, as willhereinafter be more particularly referred to.

The electric circuit through the magnet B and the wires b leadingtherefrom, is completed through a local battery (see diagram, Fig. 6)and a second pair of contact-pieces d and circuit maker and breaker d(see same figure) whenever the circuit maker and breaker b is in contactwith the jaws d, and

. the energizing of the magnet B tends to hold the arm 17 of theangle-lever in such position as to keep the circuit closed.

For convenience in explanation I shall call the electric circuit which Ihave just described as alocal circuit, and the circuit which I willhereinafter describe, leading through the same magnet B to a treadle atthe side of-the track I shall call the treadlecircuit.

- The locking mechanism which I have hereinabove partially described isintended to be located above the levers which operate the switch, the facin g-point lock and detector-bar and signal within convenient reach ofthe operator. Its relative position to such levers is represented inFigs. 4 and 5.

The levers for operating the facing-point lock and detector-bar andsignal may be of any ordinary or approved form. I have shown herein inFig. 4c a lever G, provided with a spring-actuated dog 9 for lockingthelever G at the limits of its forward and backward strokes, and haveshown as connected with the lever a vertically-slidin g bar H, thefunction of which is to release the facing-point lock anddetector-bar-lever and permit it to be operated after the switch hasbeen thrown. In connection with this bar II, I have also shown bars Hand H as three of the bars forming a set in a general system located inasingle tower, the bars H and II being respectively connected withoperating-levers, such as G, for operating the facing-point lock anddetectorbar and the signal. In connection with the bar l-I there is arod h, the head h of which is adapted to complete an electric circuitthrough either one of two sets of contact-pieces, (represented by 7L2and 79,) according to the position of the bar II. The contact-pieces 71,are supposed to be in circuit with a treadle at the side of the trackand the contact-pieces 7& are presumed to be in connection withanothertreadle at the side of another track. In the present instance Ishall assume that the contact-pieces 7L arein circuit with the treadledenoted by I, Fig. 6, and the contact-pieces h in circuit with thetreadle I of the same figure. The adjacent sides of the bars H and H areprovided with V-shaped notches, as is common, and so located withrespect to one another that the bar I'I remains locked by the key 7%until the bar H has been lifted to bring the notch in it opposite thekey h, and thereby permit the key to he slid to release the bar H. Theadjacent sides of the bars H and H are provided with recesses, theopposite sides of which are parallel, and the key f hereinbeforereferred to, is provided with tongues adapted to fit within suchrecesses and must be positively moved by means of the operating-rod fand angle-lever F, in order to lock and release the bars between whichit is located. The notch in the bar H is so located in respect to thatin the bar H that the key f can only be released from the bar H afterthe bar H has been lifted to set the facing-point lock and detector-barto lock the switch. I also provide a double key h which, when the bar His lifted, will be slid into V-shaped notches in the bars H and H andeffect a second locking of them. In connection with the bar I-l there isa rod h, the upper end of which is adapted to engage a swinging portion7a of the circuit maker and breaker 61 the section It being so hinged tothe body of the circuit maker and breaker that when the rod 7t is liftedthe section 70 will remain rigid with respect to its adjacent portionand will thereby swing the circuit maker and breaker (1 out ofengagement with the contact-pieces d, but when the rod h movesdownwardly the section 7.5 will swing and allow the rod to pass withouteffecting any breaking of the circuit.

The particular construction of the levers G and their connections withthe bars H, H, and H and with the switch facing-point lock anddetector-bar and signal mechanism forms no part of my present invention,further than they become intimately connected with the locking devicewhich I have set forth at length, and hence a further detaileddescription of them is omitted.

In order to show the practical operation of the locking device, I willsuppose thata train is moving on the main track M in the direction ofthe arrow, Fig. 6, and that it is desired to switch it from that trackonto the branch track M, same figure. First, the switch lever Gr isdrawn back to throw the switch,the movement of the dog gin connectionwith the'throw of the lever-serving to lift the bar H to bring its upperV-shaped notch opposite the key 71, and at the same time lift thecircuit maker and breaker it into engagement with the contact pieces hthereby breaking the treadle-circuit through I and closing thetreadle-circuit through I, so that when the train shall have passed ontothe branch track M it will by operating the treadle I close the circuitthrough the mag and not until then.

net B and momentarily energize the same for the purposes which willhereinafter appear. Second, the lever for operating the facingpoint lockand detector-bar is now swung, thereby lifting the bar H and sliding thekey 72.4 into the upper notch in the bar H, and thereby looking it inposition and at the same time lifting its own parallel-sided recess intoposition opposite the key f Third, the operator now slides the bar E ofthe locking device outwardly from the position shown in dotted lines tothe position shown in full lines in Fig. 2, allowing the lip e to holdit in extended position. Such sliding movement of the bar E operates therod f through the angle-lever F, and the rod f in turn operates theangle-lever F, in connection with the key f and slides the look into thenotch in the bar I-I, thereby locking the latter and hence thefacing-point lock and detector-barlever against displacement. Theelevation of the bars H and H has brought the lower V-shaped notchestherein up into position opposite to the noses of the double key 72Fourth, the switch-lever having been thrown and locked and thefacing-point lock and detector-bar lever having been thrown and locked,the next step will be the setting of the signal to indicate to theengineer on the track M that the track M is ready for him to proceed.The operation of the signal-operating lever lifts the bar 1-1 and withit the rod 7L6, which, as it passes upwardly, momentarily breaks thelocal circuit through the contactpieces d, and allows the short arm Z)of the angle-lever, carrying the armature of the magnet, to fall awayfrom the magnet, and hence throws the long arm b of the said angle-leverinto position to engage the notch e in the sliding-bar E, and hence lockthe latter against displacement. Although this breaking of the localcircuit has been but for a moment, it cannot be restored complete untilthe magnet has been energized from another source and the circuit makerand breaker 19 again engaged with the contact-pieces cl. Such energizingof the magnet takes place when the train reaches the treadle 1 upon thebranch, The elevation of the bar H has carried the notch therein pastthe positively-operating key f and has thereby prevented any possiblemovement of the facingpoint lock and detector-bar lever until the bar71.2 shall have been again depressed by the changing of the signal.

To throw the switch again upon the main track M requires a simplereversal of the steps which have been herein set forth. The closing ofthe local circuit by the action of the train upon the treadle I hasagain released the bar E of the locking device, so that after the signalis changed to danger and the bar H lowered, it may be again slidinwardlyinto the position shown in dotted lines, (shown in Fig. 2,) andthe facing-point lock and detector-bar lever thereby released, so as tobe operated to admit of the throwing of the switch.

What I claim is 1. The combination, with switch and signal operatingmechanism, of a device for controlling a positive lock in engagementwith the said switch and signal operating mechanism, an electriccircuit, including an electro-magnet, and a catch under the control ofthe electro-magnet to hold the aforesaid lock-controlling devicereleased and under the control of the switch and signal operatingmechanism to hold thelock-controlling device locked, substantially asset forth.

2. The combination, with a track, atreadle in position to be engaged bya passing train, and switch and signal operating mechanism, of a lockingdevice for positively locking the switch and signal operating mechanism,the said locking device comprising an operatingbar, a catch for lockingand releasing the bar, a local electric circuit, including anelectromagnet, for holding the catch out of engagement with the bar, andan electric circuit through the said electro-magnet and the aforesaidtreadle for energizingthe magnet and operating the catch by means of apassing train,

substantially as set forth.

3. The locking device comprising the sliding operating-bar, means forconnecting it with the lock-operating rod, the electro-magnet, the levercarrying the armature of the magnet and adapted to engage the slidingbar, and the electric circuit through the magnet and through a circuitmaker and breaker controlled by the lever which carries the armature ofthe magnet, substantially as set forth.

4. The locking device comprising the sliding operating-bar, means forconnecting it with a lock-rod, an eleotro-magnet, an anglelever, one armof which carries the armature of the magnet, the opposite one of whichhas an interlocking engagement with the sliding bar, a circuit maker andbreaker insulated from and carried by an arm of said lever, and anelectric circuit through the magnet and con tact-pieces in position tobe engaged by the said circuit maker and breaker, substantially as setforth.

5. The combination, with a movable part under the control of the switchand signal operating mechanism, of the locking device and alocking-piece under the control of said locking device, the said lockingdevice comprising an operating-bar, an electro-magnet, a lever, acircuit maker and breaker carried by said lever, a circuit maker andbreaker under the control of the aforesaid movable part, and an electriccircuit complete through said magnet and the two circuit makers andbreakers, substantially as set forth.

THOMAS H. PATENALL. Witnesses FREDK. HAYNES, GEORGE BARRY.

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